


The Heaven Inside Your Head

by hinatatas



Category: Dangan Ronpa, Super Dangan Ronpa 2
Genre: Gen, Spoilers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-04-15
Updated: 2014-04-15
Packaged: 2018-01-19 10:58:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,260
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1466938
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hinatatas/pseuds/hinatatas
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Your friends are gone, and, as a program, you're not supposed to care. Paradoxically, you're programmed to do just that, so where does that leave you?</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Heaven Inside Your Head

**Author's Note:**

> MAJOR spoilers for both games ahead, so proceed with caution!
> 
> I'm so glad I finally finished this; I've had the idea ever since I finished reading sdr2 last summer, so I hope you all enjoy it!

After you "die," you are not surprised to find your consciousness in a sort of void. You at least had that advantage, that knowledge of exactly _where_ and _what_ you were, over the other four who were executed and the six whose deaths were put on trial. As you probe through the code, you can sense them, as well. You suppose that everyone who "died" ended up in the same place regardless of what they believed, and you wonder if it's the same way for humans of different religions.

You go with Usami to help the five who remain, whispering a promise to find the others later. It feels like it's been so, so long since you've seen any of them, and you wonder how long the first two victims (one labelled a killer, but you consider him a victim of circumstance) had to spend alone with each other, how long it took them to talk things out if they even found each other or spoke at all.

The questions shift to the back of your thoughts as you watch Hinata, pale and shaking, at his stand. The rest of the survivors, even Owari, look just as distraught, and the three Future Foundation members don't seem much better, you think. You know that everyone will come to the right decision, though; it would be silly of you to come this far based off your faith in your friends only to lose hope now, so all it takes is a bit of encouragement before Hinata comes through.

You wish that you could reach out and embrace your friends one last time as they say their farewells to each other, but you hold yourself back. This is their moment, after all. As they break apart into the code and prepare to awaken elsewhere, you hear a whisper:

"Thank you, Nanami."

You smile as you feel Hinata, the last to go, fade away, and you allow yourself a moment of reflection before going to the ten still left in the simulation. There is always more work to be done.

You submerse yourself deep into the game's code, and your eyelids droop lower than usual as you run a casual scan to find the others' consciousnesses. A concentration lays thick in one area. You're not entirely sure if they were all sent there or if they found each other, but you'd like to think that the latter is true.

Usami says that she has to wrap things up on the island, so you promise to join her as soon as you can before she bounds away. The program is massive, and you are unsure how long it takes to make your way over to your destination. The particular area doesn't look anything like a stream of ones and zeroes, but like a paradise, a typical vision of a peaceful afterlife, and you find your friends gathered there.

Mioda is the first to react, engulfing you in a hug and trying to hide her tremors. "No, no, not you, too," she's saying, "who would ever hurt an angel like Chiaki?"

Togami says that you must have been the one to kill Komaeda, and you nod against Mioda's shoulder. It's technically true, though you don't think of yourself as a murderer. Komaeda doesn't seem to be around to explain what happened, though, so you fill in and then ask where he is.

Tanaka scoffs. "The moment he arrived here, the sickly one began blathering about how we were all possessed by an evil force and fled. I believe _he_ was the one under a supernatural influence, but I did not have the time to tell him such or perform the proper procedure."

You nod solemnly and look around. You can't find Tsumiki, either, and Mioda rubs your back when you ask where she is.

"We think she caught the fever before she came here, and she hadn't snapped out of it yet," she fusses. "Ibuki has no idea why _she's_ better and Mikan wasn't, but she ran off screaming even louder than Ibuki can before we could ask her anything."

Togami sighs. "The best we came up with from the others' information is that anyone else who contracted the fever recovered, but it somehow changed Tsumiki's mental state even post-mortem. We haven't seen her or Komaeda since they first showed up."

Koizumi clears her throat. "Hey, how were the others doing before you were... um, before you came here? It's just Sonia, Kuzuryuu, Souda, Owari, and Hinata now, right?"

You smile and prepare to tell everyone a long story. If the survivors are to revive this group, then perhaps it will help the process along if you can convince them that they're not really dead. No one interrupts as you speak, but by the time you tell everyone how the remaining five got out of the program and are in the real world now (you think), the expressions of disbelief say enough.

You hope they don't think that you're spouting nonsense, that you're corrupted somehow, but how else would they react to any part of such a story? They don't want to believe it; you can tell that much by looking at their faces and by the way Hanamura starts crying, disguising it as a sudden onset of hiccups.

Saionji glares at the chef and at you in turn, but she doesn't say anything. Koizumi stands open-mouthed, but she doesn't say anything. No one says anything until Togami, who you're happy to see hasn't lost his penchant for playing the leader, pulls you aside.

He clears his throat. "Nanami," he begins, "I don't know where you got this information, but is there any possible way that you could prove it?"

You nod and disappear into the program. He jumps backward, and the others swarm to where you stood. You send them words of reassurance that echo through the area, and their faces blanch as you reappear next to Togami.

Tanaka, trying to hide the fact that he had jumped backwards into Nidai once he saw you, clears his throat. "Well, perhaps you simply are intuitive to the workings of the afterlife and can manipulate your surroundings at will. I would be humbled if you could instruct me in such powers."

Koizumi shushes him. "Why would Nanami lie to us about something like this?"

You stand silently as the group debates until Mioda says that, hey, everyone's here now and should just focus on what will happen, not on what already may or may not have happened. She then asks you what _will_ happen next, and you shrug. You're honestly not sure when - or if - the five in the real world will be able to help the others, so all you can do in the meantime is wait.

You elect to wait with the nine in the "afterlife" instead of seeking out Komaeda or Tsumiki; if you go, the others may realize that they can leave, too, and you don't want them interfering with the program.

You're aware that your own cowardice factors in here; the thought of finding either one of your lost friends and then having to _leave_ them to attend to the others is troubling, and trying to bring them into the larger group would end in violence. Both Komaeda and Tsumiki were unstable when they exited the simulation, and you don't know what will happen if a murder occurs outside the island setting. You ask Alter Ego to do whatever possible to help those two, and you hear of their status occasionally.

After some time you spend talking with the others and trying to piece together their past lives, Alter Ego contacts you and says that they're going to try starting the revival process soon. You smile and prepare the others.

The nine of you stand in a circle, hands interlocked. Even Tanaka, with his aversion to touch, seems at ease, and when Hanamura starts to blur and flicker from sight, Koizumi and Togami hold his hands tighter. The small chef tries not to cry as his fingers start to fade upward into code, but you can see him shaking, and you tell him that he's going to be okay. He looks straight at you and never breaks eye contact until he's gone.

Togami and Koizumi step closer and link their hands together.

No one speaks.

The silence continues for what may be a few minutes or a few hours. It is broken when Mioda gasps and squeezes your hand. You try to squeeze back, but there's nothing there in a matter of seconds.

"Ibuki doesn't want to forget about Chiaki," she whispers. You've never heard her lower her voice, but the moment passes as she turns to the others and smiles. "Ibuki's next! She'll see everyone on the other side!" Her voice shakes as she says "everyone," as she knows that could be a lie. "She'll play a reunion concert, and we'll all be together, and everything will be okay."

She says it with such conviction that the mood somehow feels lighter after she's gone. You reach out to Tanaka and take his hand. He's trembling, and you tell him about Sonia, about how brave she was and how she never lost faith in you during your own trial. You're still talking as Nidai fades away to his right, as he grabs for Saionji's hand and she takes it without a word.

To your left, Pekoyama starts fading, and you tell her about Kuzuryuu, about how brave _he_ was and how he wanted to see her again. You say you hope that the two of them can be together soon, and the swordswoman smiles and shuts her eyes.

Togami grabs your hand as six becomes five.

There's a pause between revivals, and you offer your most optimistic smile to the other four.

Tanaka sighs. "It would be most fitting for me to remain here. I, after all, do not deserve to see the others; I do not even deserve such a peaceful afterlife, if that is what I may call it. I was destined to rule hell, not to live a life in happiness with a cherub and her comrades-"

"Shut it," Saionji mutters. "You're not even smart enough to rule a colony of ants."

Tanaka bristles. "I will have you _know_ that I have liberated many such colonies from their cruel glass prisons that so tantalizingly offered glimpses of the natural world, and they have paid me the proper reverence, of c-"

Koizumi shakes her head, and Tanaka cuts himself off. "Guys. Please don't fight. Do you want Nanami to remember us as people who bickered over nothing?"

Saionji giggles. "Big Sis, you're the one who starts a lot of the arguments!"

Koizumi smiles and shakes her head again. The group falls into silence again until Saionji voices the shared concern.

"...D'you think something went wrong?"

You say no, that you're sure they're trying their best, that they're probably just trying to help the other four on their feet and they'll have the other revivals completed soon. Alter Ego is too busy to tell you anything.

Hours pass, and Saionji sniffles. 

Another stretch of time passes, and Saionji wails as she feels Tanaka's fingers fading. The breeder looks down and smiles at her.

"Your tears are wasted, O boisterous one." He turns to you. "Nanami, know that you have the blessing of the Tanaka kingdom. Farewell."

You nod, feeling the weight of his respect, and move to Saionji's side moments later. She begins to fade, too, but she seems to appreciate the gesture. She lays her head on Koizumi's shoulder and is gone.

Koizumi seems shaken as she grabs at the air for your hand. She looks straight ahead and blinks, eyes shining, and you close the distance between you and her before lacing your fingers together and giving your most reassuring squeeze. She sniffs quietly and smiles at you and Togami.

"I hope Tsumiki and Komaeda are okay," she whispers, and that's the last thing she says before she closes her eyes and your right hand closes on empty space. You squeeze Togami's hand tighter.

You tell him about how the others admired him and missed him when he was gone. He scoffs but doesn't respond. Instead, he says, "How will you fare here by yourself, Nanami?"

You shrug and say you have Alter Ego and Usami. That's all you need, but you do hope to see the others soon, even if they don't remember you.

He nods and declares that he _will_ remember you, and he'll make the others remember you, too.

His words resonate as you are left alone, but you barely take a moment to reflect before you detect Komaeda's consciousness still in the program and set off to find him.

He's not in the cozy, familiar afterlife, but in the code somewhere, his frail form reclining on a floating zero like a child on a tire swing. He smiles as you approach.

"Nanami, Nanami!" he sings. "Nanami Chiaki, Chiaki Nanami!" His expression turns solemn. "The only person I can trust. Are the others gone yet? Did you kill them?"

You shake your head, mouth set into a firm line as you try to keep up with his disjointed speech. He laughs. "Right, no, you couldn't. You're not like me and the rest of this shitty world." You flinch. You don't think you've ever heard him swear before. "I tried to hold on to at least one little bit of optimism for a while, but I guess those rotten pieces of _filth_ got you killed, and who knows what they're doing now. I got away from the dead ones before they could corrupt me any further. You shouldn't pity them, or me, for that matter; we're all disgusting."

Komaeda looks into your eyes and never blinks as he says, "Get away from me."

The two of you stare at each other for a few shocked moments before Komaeda snarls and wrenches himself upward. "Didn't you hear what I _said_ , Nanami? Get away from me." He moves toward you, but you stay put. He glowers before regaining some measure of control, and his eyes open wide, as though he's afraid of what will happen if he closes them. "Sorry, I don't mean to be rude, of course," he continues, "but you understand that I can't have the world's last shred of hope around the likes of myself. I don't know where else you would go if not here or around the others, but it's really for the best that you protect yourself."

You tell him that the others are gone, that the two of you are in a program, and he may be the next to be revived.

He snickers. "That's funny. Do you think I _want_ to be brought back, that I'd ever want to be around the very people who _fucked_ up the _entire_ world and made me join?" He hesitates. "It's a generous offer, of course. You're practically an angel, Nanami, giving everyone another chance at life. Why don't I just stay here with you?"

You hate the way he says your name, slowly, reverently, even reluctantly, as though he wants to keep the three little syllables tucked behind his teeth. You think about convincing him that you haven't done much, really, and that you mostly just did what the Foundation wanted you to do, but it seems irrelevant.

You don't point out the contradictions in his last question, but you do say that, as the one who was always going on about hope, he should be glad for an opportunity to rebuild the world.

"Oh, you're right, Nanami," he says with a frown. "I'm being an ungrateful _wretch_ again, aren't I? I'm so sorry. I should be practically euphoric at the fact that you're even talking to me after I caused your execution. I'm sorry about that, too, but it was worth a shot, right?"

You don't answer. He laughs and returns to his zero.

"So," he says, swinging his legs above the endless space, "did you see the others before they left? Did they convince you to use me as a blood sacrifice in the name of despair? That sounds just like something the breeder would say."

You know that Komaeda must remember Tanaka's name; he knows everything about every member of the damned group, so the fact that he doesn't refer to Tanaka using his name disturbs you. You sigh and tell him about your brief - and likely final - time spent with the other students.

He nods, hums. "So why are they taking so long to revive me? Am I really dead, or do they just not want me polluting their little group?"

You don't know. Alter Ego hasn't contacted you, but you could seek out the information by yourself. You don't feel comfortable leaving Komaeda here by himself, though, and he _is_ still a classmate in the loosest sense of the word; he's someone who cares in his own way, but his methods are all wrong. You think there's still hope for him, though.

You realize that you've been silent for some time and shrug in response, trying to say something reassuring. He smiles and pats the space next to him on the zero. The number expands as you draw closer, and you sit.

You gaze out at far-away code disappearing into columns above and below. Nothing more is said until Komaeda flinches and looks at his fingers.

"They feel... tingly," he says. He leans onto you as bits of him start to break away. "Am I dying, Nanami?"

You don't know.

The two of you stay seated on the zero as Komaeda drifts off.

You try to tell him that he's going back to the others, but you realize that such a situation wouldn't even be comforting to him. You don't know if there's any way he can be happy now, even if he is revived, because he can't bring himself to trust the others anymore. You can't detect Tsumiki's consciousness anymore, so she must have been revived already, but you don't know what her mental state is, either.

You shake all this aside and manage to tell him, no, he's not dying. You mentally note that it _is_ peculiar how he's fading much slower than any of the others did, but that doesn't have to mean anything.

He smiles, fingers slackening their grip on your shoulder. "You were Hinata's anchor, you know, back at the island," he says. "I'm grateful that you can be mine now." 

Silence.

"Are you sure you don't hate me?"

A steely resolution forms in your eyes as you turn your head to him and nod. You tell him that he was doing what he thought was right, but, even though he lost hope in the others, you don't think that they have in him.

He shuts his eyes, says the same words as Hinata during his final moments in the simulation:

"Thank you, Nanami."

His consciousness ascends in chunks of numbers that flow upward to a place you can never go, and you feel his fingers, hands, arms, chest fading away against you. His face breaks apart last, mouth curved softly upward, and disappears seconds later.

You find Usami and you don't cry, because your friends have a chance to be happy now, and that is what matters to you. The two of you, two pieces of programming never meant to feel real love, cling to each other and prepare for a lonely eternity.

**Author's Note:**

> I might write another story related to this one that features Tsumiki's situation post-game; I don't think the survivors would want to risk reviving her if she still had the despair fever even after her "death," so maybe they would put her through a different program. Is that something that anyone would be interested in? 
> 
> Any thoughts are welcome! Thank you for reading!


End file.
